Exhibitor for signals



W. L. BEACH.-

EXHIBITOR FOR SIGNALS.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 8,1920. 1,391,361, PatentedSept. 20, 1921.

2 SHEET$-SHEET I.

W. L. BEACH.

EXHIBITOR FOR SIGNALS- APPLICATION FILED MAR. 8, I920.

1,391,361 Patented Sept. 20,1921.

-2 SHEETS-SHEET 2- PATENT, OFFICE.

, WALTER L. BEACH, or FLINT, MICHIGA EXI HIBITOR FOR, SIGNALS.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patented Sept 20, 1921..

Application filed March 8, 1920. Serial 110. 364377. I

To all whom it may concern:

' Be it known that I, WALTER L. BEACH, a citizen of the United States of America, residing at Flint, in the county of .Genesee and State of Michigamhave invented-certain new and useful Improvements in Exhibitors for Signals, of which the following is a specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawings.

The primary object of this invention is to provide a novel signal exhibitor that may be advantageously used in connection with automobiles and otherv motor driven vehicles for indicating to a following vehicle that the signal carrying vehicle isabout to stop or turn into another lane of travel, and thus prevent or reduce to a minimum accidents incurred by rear end collisions or injury to automobiles or pedestrians by a misunderstanding as to the movement of an automobile. V Anotherobject of my invention is to provide a signal exhibitor including a novel bracket which may be adjusted relativeto the exhibitor casing and attached to an automobile so that sight opening willbe in a desired position. Such a bracketwill permit of the exhibitor being attached to an automobile at places ordinarily inacessible or prohibitory to other signals.

A :further object of my invention is to provide an electrically illuminated signal exhibitor including a rotary sign carrying member adapted to be partially rotated by a 'fiexible member extending into the exhibitor casing, and the flexible member may be operated from any part of the automobile, but more particularly through the medium of-a controlling device forming the subject matter of a companion application filed under even date. I

A still further object of my invention is to provide a signal exhibitor wherein the parts are constructed with a view of reducing the cost of manufacture and at the same time retain those features by which safety, durability and ease of assembling are secured. With such ends in view, my invention resides in the novel construction to be hereinafter considered and then claimed, and reference will now be had to the drawings, wherein Figure 1 is a longitudinal sectional view of an exhibitor in accordance with this invention 'someother support about an automobile or Fig. 2 is a cross sectional view taken on the line II'II of Fig. 1 Fig. 3 is a similar view taken on theline II I-JIIof Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a detail view of a portionof the exhibitor bracket, illustrating a modified form of construction;

Fig. 5 is a rear elevation of the signal ex- In describing my inventionb aid of the views above referred to, I deslre'to point out that the same are intended as merely illustrative of an example by which my invention may be put into practicdtherefore I do'not care tocOnfine'my invention to the precise construction and arrangement of parts other than defined by the appended claims. 7 a

' In the drawings, the reference numeral 1 denotes a bracket having end arms 2 and a longitudinal flange '3, said flange being apertured, asat' 4, so that it maybe secured to a suitable support. The flange 3 is formed so that'it may be bent to a desired angle relative to the bracket 1 and thus per.- mit of said bracket being attached to a wheel fender, a tire carrier, a spring or similar vehicle;

The end arms 2 are apertur'ed, as at 5, so

"as to receive the interiorly screw threaded ends 'of a tubular shaft 6, and screwed on the ends of the shaft 6 are spacing nuts 7 and caps 8 and 9, the latter having an open- 'ing 10, so that lead-in wires 11 may extend caps 16 fitted in the ends of "a cylindrical casing 17 which has an oblong sight opening 18 and stamped out flange 19 to which may be connected a license sign or card and the casing is preferably made of sheet "metal adapted tobe bent to cylindrical form with its endsriveted or otherwise connected together, and the flange 19- is in proximity to the sight opening 18 so that rays of light emitted from the casing .17 may illuminate the license card or sign attached to the fl ge.

The casing caps 16 are each formed with a plurality of circumferentially pressed out teeth 20; and these teeth are adapted to engage in openings 21 in the end bracket arms 2 and hold the exhibitor casing in an adthat the sight opening 18 of, the casing may justedlposition relative to the bracket, so

cast rays of light in a desired direction.

In the exhibitor casing is a cylindrical hollow sign member 22 provided" with end walls 23 and 24 connected by tie rods 25.

. The Wall 23 has a conical member 26 bearing against the casing cap 16 atone end of the bracket 1, said conical member spac ing the end of the sign member relative to the end of the exhibitor casing. Theend wall 24 has a drum 27 and interposed between said drum and the other casing cap 16' is a coiled compression spring 28, the

"expansive force of which cooperates. with the conical member 26 in preventing longitudinal movement of the sign member I At'tached t0 and wound. on the drum '27 within the-exhibitor casing i is a flexible .member 29 extending over a sheave 30' rotatable in a bracket 31 connected to the exhibitor casing 17 at an opening 32 of said casing, and the flexible member 29 is adapted to be pulled upon to rotate the sign member relative to its supporting tubular shaft 6. As pointed outin the begin-- 5 ning the flexible member 29 is adapted to be operated by a controlling device forming the subject matter of a companion application filed under even date;v

To restore the sign member to normal position, after having been partially rotated through the medium of the'drum 2 7 and the flexible member 29, a spiral or coiled retractile spring 33 is employed, said spring having its inner convolution connected to vthe'tubular shaft 6, and its outer convolution sign member. 1

connected to one of thetie The sign member22 is preferably made from a piece of material, as shown in Fig. 7, thepiece of material having end flanges 34 adapted vIto overlap and be connected together, as at 35. so that one of said flanges will provideasocket 36 that may cooperate with a socket 37 of. the sign memberin holdings, piece of transparent material38, as ce luloid.- Of course the piece of material rods 25 of the the sockets 36 and 37, as best shown in Fig. 2. V

The piece of material forming the :sign member 22 has portions thereof cut or stamped out to provide characters 39 of such words as Stop,'Right, and Left, and withtransparent material at these signs it is possible for rays of light from the incandescent lamp 15 to be east through the sign member for display at the sight opening 18 of the exhibitor casing. The transparent material which lines the sign member excludes dirt and foreign matter from the interior of said sign member and permits of thewords being displayed colors.

a The sign member 22 has a circular opening 40 provided with opposed notches 41 and the opening 40 is adapted to receive a detachable lens 42 clamped betweenp'eripheral' retaining rings 43, one of said retain ing rings being of aless diameter'than the other and provided with opposed lugs .44. It is therefore possible to setthe lens 42 in the opening 40 with the lugs 44 passing through thenotches 41, and thus partially rotate the lens so that the lugs 44.will be out of 'alinement with the notches 41} and thereby cooperate with the sign member in re-o 'taining the lens 42 in engagement therewith. The lens 42 is preferably made of transparent material, as celluloid and is,

adapted to providefa spot or tail .light.-j

As shown in Fig. 1 the ends of'the tubular shaft 6- are held by the nuts 7 and the caps 87 frictionally' engaging the end arms of the bracketgl, so that the tubular shaft "6 canarms 2. and thus prevent rotation-of thetubular shaftrclative to the bracket arm.

in desired I attach considerable importance tofthe fact that, the exhibitor parts are-cut and stamped of sheet metal and may be'finished to harmonize with other piecesof hardsimilar vehicle. 7 r

lVhen it is desired to renew the incandescent lamp 15 within the sign member, the detachable lens 42 may beremoved from aware or fixtures about an automobile or the opening 40' and the hand inserted to remove the incandescent lamp l5 and replace it withanothen. lVhat I claim is 1, An exhibitor for signal purposescoma prising a bI'iLClIQtfhZtVlIlg end;arms,-a 'cas- V ing, caps on theendsof said casing, circumferentially disposed teeth on said ca s adapted to engage insaid arms and hold sald casing relative to the end arms of said bracket, and a rotary sign member in said casing. V

2. An exhibitor as characterized in claim 1, wherein said rotary sign member has one end thereof engaging one of the caps, a coiled expansion spring interposed between said rotary sign member and the other cap to maintain said sign member at one end of said casing, and a drum surrounding a portion of said spring and attached to said sign member for rotating said sign member.

3. An exhibitor comprising a casing, a shaft axially thereof, a rotary sign member on said shaft at one end of said casing, a drum secured to said sign member about said shaft at the opposite end of said casing adapted for rotating said sign member, a coiled spring about said shaft and extending into said drum and abutting an end wall of said casing to retain said sign member at the end of said casing.

4. An exhibitor comprising a bracket having end arms provided with openings, a casing having end caps provided with circumferentially disposed teeth adapted to engage in the openings of the end arms of said bracket and hold said casing in an adjusted position relative to said bracket, and sign displaying means within said casing, and expansion means cooperating with said sign displaying means in retaining said end caps against said bracket arms.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

WALTER L. BEACH.

Witnesses i KARL H. BUTLER, ANNA M. Donn, 

